Tuesday, October 4, 2016

University : an agreement “historic” for the establishment of a selection at the entrance of the master – Franceinfo

For Najat Vallaud-Belkacem, this is a “historical compromise”. An agreement has been reached, Tuesday, October 4, by the minister of national Education, the student organizations and the presidents of the university on the establishment of a selection at the entrance to the master from September 2017. In return, the universities have agreed to guarantee a right to the continuation of studies (master 2, claimed by the student organizations. Here is what to retain of this agreement.

Why introduce a screening before the master 1 ?

The master is a cycle of two years (M1 and M2), which is a result of the license and which was created in 2002 to replace the master’s degree (bac+4) and the DEA or DESS (bac+5). The selection, which formerly existed at the end of the master, to enter the DEA or DESS, which had been preserved and was therefore in the middle of the cycle master. This selection was prohibited, but practiced by the universities, lack of sufficient parking spaces in some masters in great demand. In the Face of a proliferation of actions in justice on the part of students refused, the department has adopted in the spring of 2016 a decree authorizing some 1 300 masters M2 to select their students between the M1 and the M2. A solution designed to be temporary.

This agreement must “to put an end to the malfunctioning of the masters”, explained the minister. “It is at the entrance to the master that the universities can recruit students according to their academic level, their professional project. And once students are there, they are there for four semesters”, she explained, avoiding use of the term selection.

All entries in master 2 will they for all accepted ?

“We are introducing in the law a right to the pursuit of studies for all those who want it”, said Najat Vallaud-Belkacem. The candidate denied the master of his choice may request the vice-chancellor, who will have to make three proposals, including one available at the institution where the student has obtained his license, or, failing that, an establishment of its region academic.

The faculties of law and of psychology may, however, select between the first (M1) and second year (M2), because several of the contests going on after the completion of the M1.

The device will have a platform, “trouvermonmaster.gouv.fr” which will list the offer on the national plan, and a fund, the amount still to be determined, to help the mobility of students who have not earned a master’s degree in their own university, said Najat Vallaud-Belkacem.

The platform, which will not provide that information, and will not perform management of vows, should be ready in January next year because the reform must be included “as quickly as possible in the act, to apply to the academic year 2017″.

Why did the minister describe it-does this compromise as”historic” ?

In fact, everyone has a not in this folder contrversé. On the theme of the selection, widely taboo to the left, students ‘ unions and university presidents opposed, first refusing to hear about a selection deemed to be necessary by the latter.

It will be very difficult “weakening [the act] by the following”, in the light of the consensus obtained between all the partners, said Najat Vallaud-Belkacem to seven months of the presidential election.

The Conference of university presidents (CPU) has hailed “a solution to a problem that plagues the life of the universities and their students now for nearly ten years”. This agreement “will allow institutions to remove the legal uncertainty”, she adds.

Jimmy Losfeld, president of Fage, student union, wishes to “challenge the term “selection”, because “the selection is exclusion”. However, this reform allows all licence holders wishing to continue their studies enrolling in a master’s degree, he says. Lilâ Down, the president of the Unef, the first student union, puts the emphasis on “the right to the pursuit of studies”.